I am amazed at the number of friends, as well as family members(some friends as close as family)who have been put upon by the evils of Cancer! It has touched my family many times, taking my dearest, and youngest sister Judith this past summer. I cant tell anybody how they should feel about what it is doing to them, family or friends. I can tell you that I might see it differently than some, and the same as others. My beliefs are based on my faith in God. An understanding that we all, yes everyone of us, must and will deal with the hereafter one day. Our faith, or lack of it.......will greatly impact the way it affects us at that time, and place! Having a physician tell one that they have only so much time left........well we can only imagine the way one might feel. Maybe it is my age, but I have often thought that knowing the amount of time left on the meter.......would be better than not knowing.......if you were not saved. For the believer, such time tables have little meaning.........as we have faith in the will of God, as well as knowing that he knows better than anyone.........that which is best for each and everyone of us. My sister Judith........her life was the Lord! She embraced a death, one that had no sting because of her faith! It was not the dying of a person.........it was the changing of her being.........to a better, and incorruptible body........as promised, to be in the presence of God.........forever! Yes, I miss my sister, but how can I be sad knowing where she is, and whom she is with? No longer in pain, never to feel pain again. Never to feel too cold, too hot, never to feel the pain of hunger, and never to experience of any malady that could affect the human body, spirit, or mind. Am I some kind of Holy Roller? Hardly........I am working, praying, asking God to make me more like Christ and less like me......daily. I do have a relationship with Christ........having accepted Him as my Lord and Savior many long years ago. Sadly, only recently, have I begun to understand what that means, and what I should be doing. What I am is a person who has been through the pain of watching a loved one die. God will, if you allow Him, provide for a Peace beyond all understanding, in the mist of the most turbulent of times! That peace is a gift, that will benefit those who are watching, waiting, praying, as well as those who are the ones dying, suffering, in pain! For any of you, who find yourselves in a situation in your life, where this post seems to fit. Allow me to offer some advice, from a humble man, at a difficult time in your journey. I am not sure why I am writing this, nor do I have any idea as to what I am going to write.........I pray that God is giving me the right things to pass on to you, and I pray that it calms the spirits of one and all. Praying for, and with the dying.......is important. Here is some advice from those who do this daily. Read and quote from the bible, if they are saved, a reaffirmation is good! It can, and does put those around at ease. If they have not committed to Christ before, asking them if they wish to.........can be done by anyone there. You dont have to be a priest or pastor. For those of you who are not sure how........the following is one of the representations of what is often called the Sinners Prayer. “Father, I know that I have broken your laws and my sins have separated me from you. I am truly sorry, and now I want to turn away from my past sinful life toward you. Please forgive me, and help me avoid sinning again. I believe that your son, Jesus Christ died for my sins, was resurrected from the dead, is alive, and hears my prayer. I invite Jesus to become the Lord of my life, to rule and reign in my heart from this day forward. Please send your Holy Spirit to help me obey You, and to do Your will for the rest of my life. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.” Hebrews 9:27 actually says that we have a day that God has appointed for us to die, saying “And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.” God has actually given each human being a set number of days to live. Psalm 139:16 makes this clear, “Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.” Ecclesiastes 3:2a clearly indicates that there is “a time to be born and a time to die.” “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Rom 10:9). “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household” (Acts 16:31). “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). The certainty of the promises of God can provide peace and comfort knowing that those who die in Christ will be absent from the body but will be present with the Lord (2 Cor 5:8). No one comes to the Father (and heaven) except through Jesus Christ (John 6:44). There is no other way to gain eternal life than through the Son of God (Acts 4:12). If you are not yet a believer in Jesus Christ, I pray that you will come to saving faith today. Jesus says “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28). “I will in no way caste you out” (John 6:37). Jesus says that, “You will never be snatched out of My hands nor out of My Father’s hands” (John 10:28-29). If you will only believe in Me, you can have eternal life (John3:16). That is my prayer for you this very day. While the comfort that I have obtained from friends, family, church brothers and sisters, has been compassionate, and helpful...........it pales in comparison to the faithfulness, love, and promises of a living, and Loving God!
Posted on: Fri, 19 Dec 2014 21:12:13 +0000
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